Gold Beach Placer

The Gold Beach Placer is a gold mine located in Alaska.

About the MRDS Data:

All mine locations were obtained from the USGS Mineral Resources Data System. The locations and other information in this database have not been verified for accuracy. It should be assumed that all mines are on private property.

Mine Info

Satelite View

MRDS mine locations are often very general, and in some cases are incorrect. Some mine remains have been covered or removed by modern industrial activity or by development of things like housing. The satellite view offers a quick glimpse as to whether the MRDS location corresponds to visible mine remains.

Site Name

Primary: Gold Beach Placer

Commodity

Primary: Gold
Tertiary: Copper
Tertiary: Mercury
Tertiary: Tin
Tertiary: Tungsten

Location

State: Alaska
District: Koyukuk

Land Status

Land ownership: BLM Administrative Area
Note: the land ownership field only identifies whether the area the mine is in is generally on public lands like Forest Service or BLM land, or if it is in an area that is generally private property. It does not definitively identify property status, nor does it indicate claim status or whether an area is open to prospecting. Always respect private property.

Holdings

Not available

Workings

Not available

Ownership

Not available

Production

Not available

Deposit

Record Type: Site
Operation Category: Past Producer
Operation Type: Unknown
Years of Production:
Organization:
Significant: N
Deposit Size: S

Physiography

Not available

Mineral Deposit Model

Not available

Orebody

Not available

Structure

Not available

Alterations

Not available

Rocks

Not available

Analytical Data

Analytical Data: PLACER CONCENTRATE SAMPLE CONTAINED ABOUT .18% EU.

Materials

Ore: Gold
Gangue: Galena
Gangue: Monazite
Gangue: Hematite
Gangue: Garnet
Gangue: Rutile
Gangue: Bismuthinite
Gangue: Sphene
Unknown: Chalcopyrite
Unknown: Scheelite
Unknown: Cinnabar
Unknown: Cassiterite

Comments

Comment (Deposit): GOLD-BEARING GRAVELS LIE ON TOP OF A 30 FT. HIGH SLOPING BENCH OF THICK UNCONSOLIDATED WASH DEPOSITS IN A POINT BAR. SOME GOLD SCATTERED THROUGH TOP 20 FT. OF GRAVEL. BEST GRAVELS MINED WERE 18-24 IN. THICK IN 3 CLAIMS (60 ACRES); MOST OF GOLD RESTED ON FALSE BEDROCK OF REDDISH SAND FROM 2 TO 12 INCHES THICK, AND THE RICHEST YIELD WAS OBTAINED FROM AN AREA 150-200 FT. WIDE AND ABOUT 1/4 MI. LONG. IN A FEW PLACES DEEPER LAYERS OF REDDISH SAND WITH PAYING QUANTITIES OF GOLD WERE FOUND FROM 6-8 FT. BENEATH THE SURFACE.

Comment (Location): USGS MF-387, LOC. 3. GOLD BENCH PLACER MINE MARKED ON BETTLES (D-2) ON A POINT BAR ON THE NORTH SIDE OF THE KOYUKUK RIVER. LAND STATUS VALUE CALCULATED 6-94 USING GIS OVERLAY ANALYSIS WITH BLM 1:2,500,000 SCALE OWNERSHIP STATUS MAP (1991).

Comment (Production): PRODUCTION 1900-04 ABOUT 6,050 FINE OZ. AU; NOT DATA ON LATER PRODUCTION.

Comment (Development): MINING IN EARLY 1900'S BY HAND METHODS. IN 1940'S HEAVY EQUIPMENT WAS USED FOR MINING.

Comment (Workings): SHAFTS SUNK INTO BENCH FAILED TO REACH BEDROCK.

Comment (Geology): DEPOSIT FORMED WHEN STREAMS IN AREA FLOWED AT A HIGHER LEVEL. ; REG.COM: SOURCE OF HEAVY MINERALS NOT KNOWN; PROBABLY RECONCENTRATED FROM GLACIAL DEPOSITS, BUT MAY HAVE BEEN DERIVED FROM MOUNTAINS BETWEEN SOUTH FORK AND JIM RIVERS.

Comment (Deposit): RIVER GRADIENT UNDER 20 FT. PER MILE. ; INFO.SRC : 1 PUB LIT; 2 UNPUB REPT

Comment (Deposit): THIS SITE NAME WAS CREATED BY THE REPORTER OR OTHER USGS EMPLOYEE BASED ON PROXIMITY TO SOME MAJOR GEOGRAPHIC FEATURE.

References

Reference (Deposit): USGS MF-387 (D-2), LOC. 3.

Reference (Deposit): USGS BULLETIN 532, P. 105-107.

Reference (Deposit): USGS BULLETIN 1374, P. 159-160.

Reference (Deposit): USGS OF 78-94, P. 11.

The Top Ten Gold Producing States

These ten states contributed the most to the gold production that built the West from 1848 through the 1930s. The Top Ten Gold Producing States.